1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a steam generator and a heating cooking apparatus having the same, and, more particularly, to a steam generator capable of preventing power leakage of a steam heater that is used to generate heat when electric power is applied thereto, and a heating cooking apparatus having the steam generator.
2. Description of the Related Art
Examples of general heating cooking apparatuses used to cook food include a microwave oven using a high frequency, and a gas oven and an electric oven designed to directly apply heat to food using a heater. Of the above mentioned heating cooking apparatuses, the microwave oven has a great limit in the kind of food allowed to be cooked thereby and suffers from deterioration in the taste of the cooked food because it causes excessive drying of the food. Also, the gas oven and the electric oven have problems of excessively long cooking time and low cooking efficiency because they use air having a relatively low density as a heat transfer medium between the heater and food to be cooked.
Recently, as a solution of compensating for the above described problems of the conventional heating cooking apparatuses, a novel heating cooking apparatus (hereinafter, referred to as “steam oven”) has been developed. The steam oven is designed to heat food using steam. When cooking food using the steam oven, it is possible to maintain an appropriate amount of moisture in food and consequently, maintain original taste of food. Also, steam filling up a cooking compartment of the oven acts as an efficient heat transfer medium, resulting in a reduction in cooking time.
The steam oven generally includes a steam generator to generate and supply steam by heating water, and a water supply device to supply water into the steam generator. The steam generator includes a steam container to provide a steam generation space therein, and a steam heater to heat water supplied into the steam container. The water supply device includes a water vessel and a water supply pump to transfer water stored in the water vessel into the steam container. A steam supply tube is interposed between the steam container and the cooking compartment, to supply the steam generated in the steam container into the cooking compartment therethrough.
However, in consideration of the fact that the steam oven uses water, the steam oven should be designed to prevent power leakage, so as prevent a variety of electronic elements from coming into contact with water. In particular, since the steam heater, which is operated upon receiving electric power, is located adjacent to the steam container into which water is supplied, it is important to prevent a terminal of the steam heater from coming into contact with water.